Hi! I asked this question in r/budgetaudiophile. Now let’s see what you guys think.
Obviously, we all have our own sound preferences. BUT! Let’s have a talk. What do you think are the most underrated and underappreciated speakers you liked that seem to not get much love?
On the other hand, what speakers you don’t get the appeal of, but they are very appreciated by the community? Could be a specific model or a brand in general.
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A pair of Mitsubishi towers (forgot the model number) that sound way better now than they ever originally did with the replacement parts I put in
Over -Golden Ear bookshelf speakers sounded very bloated with pasive radiator. V shaped response sounding.
I’d have to listen again but I recall liking the DeVore sound
Underrated: Fyne Audio Overrated: KEF, B&W
No love for Harbeth?
I wanted to say Harbeth… I love mine… much in line with the Spendor comment above
How about not rated at all… Nobody talks about Boston Acoustics. Nobody talks about Denon. Under Rated - Cambridge. Over rated - everything I don’t want to afford. I could, I just don’t want to… Denafrips, Chord, PASS Labs, PSAudio, etc. I’m sure they sound great, just… how much greater do I need? I wouldn’t buy UP even if I won a big lottery. I’d buy up to JBL L100 or Klipsch Forte or Cornwalls, and call it a day.
Under: Ascend Acoustics - loving my 3.1 setup w/ matched Sierra V2’s.
I’m actually feeling the itch to build another system for the lesser watching TV in our living room… Maybe time to take the plunge on some recommendations here!
Overrated: Most enclosed/boxed speakers
Underrated: Open-baffle speakers
I have Focal speakers for my car and they are piercingly bright. I don’t love them. At all.
i don’t hear many people talk about them but my very first love were the Dali Zenzor 3. i paid 299€ for a brand new pair and they sound incredible, i personally think they’re more enjoyable overall than my LS50 Meta from KEF even tho i ended up selling the Dali to a friend and keeping the KEF because they’re more precise. I miss the Dalis a lot
I picked up some Paradigm S8’s used - scratch and dent discount too - like 8 years ago. I think they retailed for $8-10k, I paid $2500. The damn things are probably 100 lbs each, cherry finish, 6 drivers.
I power them with a Prima Luna Prologue that was a floor model ($1800), and some PS audio gear (power station and their dac). Fantastic sound. Close your eyes, and it feels like Muddy Waters, or Sting, or whoever is about 8 ft away playing their set. Its just the greatest feeling in home audio.
I keep thinking about an upgrade, but I think Im getting 90% perfection for a reasonable (over the years) investment.
You guys are making me feel better about not doing anything new or spendy.
Is there any desktop speakers that you guys can recommend me ? I need a near field speaker not too big. The size is around the swans d100.
Btw what do you guys think about the swans d100? Is it any good? Or is there something better ? Can recommend me?
Budget? Any other preferences to narrow down suggestions?
The old Cambridge Soundworks Tower and Ensemble speakers sounded great to me. Underrated.
So pretty much making this list with what is in our showroom at this moment.
Overrated : B&W 801 D4 Signature and most of the D4 range, B&W 600 series S3, Monitor Audio Bronze Series (The Silver series is wonderful), Wharfedale Evo Line - These are the current Overrated speakers i have listened to in rotation in the last bit.
Underrated : Vivid Audio (Have the Giya G3 S2 and Kaya 45’s here at the moment)
There are a plethora of other brands and speakers stacked in our showroom but that is my mention as of this week.
Overrated: KEF LS50 family. They do one thing great, and I respect that. The weak impact and shallow bottom end should let you review other speakers though. They’re not great for the price. Maybe $500 at best.
Over: Kef, Triton Goldenear
Under: Philharmonic BMR Tower